Improving English Language Speaking Skills In a Hurry

Do you need to work on improving your English language speaking skills quickly?

Almost everyone who I’ve talked with who works in international pharmaceutical or biotech companies has at least a basic understanding of English. But when you’re doing lab work or clinical trials in a non-English-speaking country, you may not need to actually speak English very often.

That can change suddenly if you get a promotion or new position that requires you to answer questions or explain your work to colleagues from other countries, or even to meet often with your international team.

So Why Should a Promotion You've Worked Hard to Get Keep You Awake at Night?

The problem is most likely not that you don't know the English words for the work you’ve been doing or the idea you want to share. What’s hard is making the transition to talking about all of it in English—or remembering the English you already know at the moment you need it to respond to an unexpected question or argument.

If you worry that you’ll forget everything you know when asked in English about your work, you’re not alone! A lot of other people share those anxieties.  But there is a simple solution: practice.

Even a little targeted practice with questions and work conversations in English can help you get more comfortable in English. A few weeks of practice can help you stop fearing minor mistakes and just focus on making your points clearly, so you can participate more freely and confidently in such conversations.

Improving English Language Speaking Skills: On Your Own or With Help

The more opportunities you can find to practice speaking in English, even for a few sentences, the better! (It will even help you if you speak briefly about what you are looking at or thinking about when you're alone, though conversations with someone else are best! Don't worry about getting the grammar perfect-- just express your thought. You will get better as you continue, especially if you have also been reading and listening to any podcasts or news or talks in English.

Here are some of the types of questions and conversations worth practicing:

When preparing a presentation, think about what kinds of questions people might ask you, and practice answering them. (You won't be able to anticipate every question, especially if preparing by yourself, but this exerise is still so useful!)

When representing your team or company, be prepared to answer questions about what your team is working on or how a clinical trial or project is going.

Have a summary of basic data that others may want to know about your current work and any preliminary results, whether you will be attending a conference or networking event, talking with management or different teams in your company, or explaining your work to KOLs (key opinion leaders) or people from other companies.

Also have a list of sources where they (or you!) can find more information if someone wants details you don’t know.

When attending a team or company meeting, be sure to review the meeting agenda if there is one. This can help you understand the purpose of the meeting and prepare for any discussions relevant to your work. You can think about what they may ask you and also ask any questions you may have.

If you want to share a suggestion or proposal, take notes ahead of the meeting about ways you could introduce it and defend your idea, as well as any English words you want to be sure to remember, and even how to pronounce them. (This is something I often help my students practice because of the clarity and confidence it can provide.)

Learn a few polite ways to express disagreement in English. (I have some good resources if you want to learn more.)

Learn a few clarifying questions you can use when you are not sure about what someone just told you or what they want you to tell them. You can use phrases like “Could you repeat that? I didn’t catch (or didn’t hear, or didn’t understand) the last part,” “That’s an interesting idea. Could you give me more details?” or “Let me see if I understand. You want to... and ...”

A little planning and English practice ahead of time can make the actual event so much easier and more productive!

If you have any questions or concerns about this kind of planning, I'd be glad to answer them-- or if it's better, to get on a quick Zoom call. Let me know what you think on the form below. (I'm also on LinkedIn almost every day, so you can reach me there if it's easier.)

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The Big Thing to Remember

Improving English language speaking skills-- or any language skills-- doesn't require special talents or super-human effort. It just takes consistent, frequent short tries.

Whether you pracice alone or with help, a few minutes several times a week make a noticeable difference sooner than you might expect! If you follow the suggestions above, preparing before events and planning in English as much as you can, you'll improve quickly-- and get more comfortable speaking in English even in unplanned conversations. It's worth the effort! 

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